CHRONICLES

Thursday, 21 August 2014

With time slowly winding down before my one month vacation has finally ended, I have decided to take it upon myself to a 30 day challenge in order to improve not only my overall body and fitness but also other aspects of my life as well.

As I wandered around Indigo, meticulously looking between pre-teen covers of vampires and science-fiction heartthrobs and trying not to be obvious as I drifted back and forth to the romance section, I finally came across the peaceful self-help area of the store. Being quietly tucked away behind the crowded Starbucks café, this lovely little place distracted me for most of my time waiting for a call from a friend. Truthfully, I didn't know what to expect (maybe people in pretzel yoga stances or prayer beads?) but I found it comforting finding both men, women and people of every age surveying the shelves. Great, maybe I wasn't the only one needing a little self-help!

With that little enlightenment, I came across the book "The Happiness Project" and after reading a few pages, I contemplated what really did make me happy in life- good friends, a loving relationship, financial stability, a happy household, successful at my job- well the list goes on. But how do we get there and more importantly, how do we sustain it?

I think it is rather difficult and in fact, misleading to think of happiness as an end goal and I think this is what the author was getting at in her book. In order to be happy, we need to set small, attainable goals that will contribute to our happiness rather than get us to the imaginary promise land of "happiness."

And as a result of this, I have decided to take a 30 day challenge not as a way to always assess what makes me happy, but to document what does and then go from there. In all honestly, a large part of this will be related to beauty, mind and fitness as this is where a large part of my time and energy goes into. However with my looming job hunting over the horizon, I know it will expand into much more important parts of my life.

The point of this is to kick start my mind and body into a happier and healthier life. So have fun and enjoy the ride with my as I share with you my journey to find my little brightsides! xo

Thursday, 7 August 2014

Writing can be a difficult task for anyone, but with university life only a couple months behind me, I am currently stuck in that "academic, must find reliable sources" phase. I am currently tackling a new project for a non-profit organization I work for and with this new task, I have the amazing opportunity to write a children's book that will be sold at the store front. But how can I possibly move from being chastised for using "I" to now writing solely from a child's point of view? With time and practice I tell you. With this new experience, I finally took the time yesterday to head out to my neighbourhood's Starbucks to sit down and write out my thoughts. Here's what I decided to wear on the lovely sunny Toronto day!

I haven't had the chance to wear shorts this season and it was great busting out an old pair from Urban Outfitters. I paired them with a silk top and bandeau from Aritzia, a camo jacket also from Urban Outfitters and my new Zara flats. My flats are actually proving to be very comfortable but my heels do tend to stick out a lot. Oh well, c'est la vie!

I absolutely love pairing edgy, street clothes with more dainty, feminine pieces. I chose to pair my camo jacket with a soft silk tank from Aritzia to add some contrast and texture. To make the outfit even more interesting, I added a pink lace bralette underneath to peek out from my silk top. Paired with my Casio watch, it was a perfect blend of my favourite styles.﻿

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My mind was exploding with new ideas for the book but nothing sounded quite right when it appeared on my laptop screen. I tend to have this habit to over doubt myself and this time wasn't any different. But I guess this is how all writers feel sometimes. After submitting the "roughest of rough drafts" I proceeded to second guess why I even sent it in the first place. But I believe now that half the battle of writing, is having the guts to press "send" and wait for feedback. So that is what I am doing. Do you have any tips for first time writers? Let me know, xo

Tuesday, 5 August 2014

With summer slipping away in this poor Toronto weather, I am slowing trying to transition my closet from shorts and tanks to basic fall pieces. I love this time of the year, not only because the weather is slightly cooler and more comfortable than earlier before, but also because it is finally SALE SEASON! With stores making room for their new fall stock, old summer and even spring items are left to be manhandled by us bargain shoppers. With that being said, I went into Zara yesterday hoping to find some great work pants only to pick up these lovely pair of leather flats.

The tag on them states "authentic leather" which makes me wonder how I got them on such a good deal. I picked up a size 6 in this footwear after trying on the 6 1/2 and finding my feet slip out at the ends. I have to admit however, the size 6 is a bit snug but based on past experience, I am anticipating these shoes to stretch a little. And if not, well at least I look cute in them. My favourite part about these shoes are the skin texture detail at the top. It's s a great little twist on a such a basic wardrobe staple.

With an original price of $69.90 and being discounted to a whopping $25.99 I can definitely say I made a wonderful purchase! I can't wait to start wearing them and working them into this cooler weather. Until then, happy shopping xo,